title: Teaching medical students about epilepsy.
abstract: A small study was designed to evaluate three seminars on epilepsy for junior medical students. A self-completion questionnaire on knowledge and attitudes was constructed and administered to case and control students and, as part of a parallel study, to senior medical students, general practitioners, and a sample of patients attending general practice. Students undertaking seminars on epilepsy showed significant improvement in overall knowledge, but not in attitudes. Many students had observed an epileptic seizure before entering medical school, but neither this, nor close acquaintance with persons with epilepsy, appeared to affect their responses. Age appeared to influence knowledge in the sample of general practice attenders, with those aged 30-59 scoring a significantly higher mean score than older and younger subgroups.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, Ninewells Hospital and Medical School, Dundee, Scotland.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mason
authors.forename: G W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Fenton
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jamieson
mesh_terms: D001294:Attitude to Health; D004501:Education, Medical; D004827:Epilepsy; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching / Q000592:standards*